Chicago, Ill., August 17, 2004 - On 11 August 2004 BOWE SYSTEC AG reached an agreement with its North American partners at BOWE Bell + Howell, USA, to increase its holdings from 50 percent to 60 percent at the beginning of 2005. The remaining shares currently held by Glencoe Capital are to be acquired in annual increments of 10 percent. This agreement builds on the momentum started when BOWE SYSTEC acquired 50 percent of Bell + Howell in December of 2002. The resulting product line and services provides customers with the best of both former companies and established BOWE SYSTEC as the worldwide market share leader for high volume document processing. This new agreement accelerates the integration of BOWE Bell + Howell with BOWE SYSTEC AG. "This provides a clear indication of the direction for BOWE Bell + Howell, as well as a long-term commitment to our customers through ownership structure exclusively committed to our industry" said John Lombard, President of BOWE Bell + Howell Document Processing Solutions. "The North American market continues to be a strategically important part of our global strategy. By more quickly integrating BOWE Bell + Howell, we can accelerate many of our strategic growth initiatives" said Dr. Claus Gerckens, CEO of BOWE SYSTEC.